The Boy Next Door
by Anime Addict 24
Summary: Just a short fluffy oneshot explaining how Kyo and Tohru met. Kinda cliché, but still cute, I hope o3o


As soon as the school bell rang, high school student Kyo Sohma bolted out of his seat, anxious to get out of there and begin his weekend. It was a warm Friday afternoon in early May, and even the teachers had been fidgeting and watching the clock, eager to head home. He paused at the doorway, searching the room for a head of brown hair. He found her, laughing between her two best friends. Unlike him she seemed perfectly comfortable, and in no particular hurry to leave. He sighed but couldn't help smiling, her joy as always spreading to him. He stepped out of the way of other students and waited for her to finish her conversation.  
As Tohru Honda stepped out of the room, she was met with a pair of red-orange eyes, watching her from beneath surprisingly bright orange hair. She smiled and Kyo smiled back, falling into step beside her. "Where are Arisa-san and Hana-san? Surely they're planning to follow us and make sure I don't do anything to you?" He asked teasingly. She grinned and shook her head. "No, Uo-chan has detention for punching someone again, and Hana-chan's staying to help out. You have the honor of walking me home all by yourself!" He smiled and took her hand. "Well, in that case, I have a surprise to show you. We'll take a detour today, I think."  
She allowed him to lead her down a few streets, trusting that he wouldn't get lost. Eventually, they came to a grassy park. "Oh, how cute!" She exclaimed. "How did you find this place?" He smiled and didn't answer, instead continuing to walk, this time through the grass. When they'd gone a little ways, he turned to her. "Do you trust me?" She looked at him, surprised he'd bothered to ask. "Of course!" "Good. Close your eyes." Without questioning him she did as ordered, smiling when she felt him kiss the back of the hand he was still holding.  
She concentrated on keeping her eyes shut and putting one foot in front of the other, becoming rather disoriented as they kept walking. Just as she opened her mouth to ask, Kyo reassured her, "We're almost there, just keep walking." Moments later he stopped, and spoke again. "Alright, go ahead and open your eyes, then." She did so, and gasped in amazement. "Oh, Kyo, I can see everything!" They stood atop a hill that overlooked the entirety of their town, everything doll-sized and far away. After pointing to each other all the different landmarks, their houses, and how different it all looked from there, they turned to each other, sharing a sweet kiss.  
As they separated, a gust of wind whispered through Tohru's hair, and she closed her eyes in bliss. Kyo looked at her and smiled softly. He was so lucky to have her.  
They lay down next to each other, arms and legs tangled together. Snuggling close to him, Tohru looked up at the clear sky, remembering the day they'd met.

_Always regarded as the strange one, Tohru had never really had any friends. The kids on her street were all older than her, most of them unkind as well. Growing up with no siblings and no father was difficult, and her mother had to work almost all the time to support them. She always wished for just one friend, someone to talk to and trust. No one ever came, though, and by the time she was thirteen she'd become mostly accustomed to the loneliness. Her mother worried about her, of course, but there was nothing she could do. Then, everything changed.  
The house next to theirs had been empty for as long as she could remember, having been occupied by an old man who died only a year or two after she was born. But when she was coming home from school on one crisp, fall afternoon, she saw a telltale moving van in the driveway. Not intending to be nosy, she walked by and saw some things that could belong to a kid her age, or at least close: a soccer ball, computer, guitar, and some books she recognized as required reading from school last year. She couldn't help but hope and wonder despite herself about meeting whoever it was and making friends with him or her. Worrying that she'd be seen, she hurried by, but spent the rest of the day wondering about the family moving in, and the curtain in the house she'd seen move as she walked by.  
Finally she couldn't help it, and went back outside. At this point the van was gone, and all the boxes had been moved inside. She stood and looked at the house for a long moment, pondering, then jumped and clapped a hand over her mouth when the front door opened. Unable to see well in the twilight, she blushed and put her head down, beginning to walk away. She froze in her tracks as she head a low, unmistakably male adolescent voice call out to her retreating back. "Hey! I'm not gonna yell at you or anything!" She turned around slowly, her curiosity getting the better of her shyness.  
The boy came out, shutting the door behind him, and walked towards her. His hair was the first thing she noticed: Bright as flame, it matched his eyes, which were a red she'd never seen before in a human- or, in fact, any other animal. She kept still, watching him as he continued walking towards her. He had the confidence and grace of a fighter; someone who knew his strength but was also aware of what his limits were. He stood in front of her now, a comfortable distance away. Even without knowing him, as she took the hand he offered for her to shake, Tohru felt a... a spark, she called it, unable to find any less cliché way to describe the immediate, impossible feeling of companionship, even love.  
"Hi, I'm Kyo," he said, shaking her hand. "I'm Tohru, nice to meet you!" She smiled at him, and he grinned back, both glad to find someone new, someone they would be able to trust.  
_

And those feelings did turn into love, so that now, four years later, they were as close as any two people could be.  
"You know, I've loved you since that first day," Kyo said gruffly. She didn't have to look to know he was blushing. He was remembering it too, then.  
"Same." He wrapped his arms tighter around her in response, and her smile widened. Kissing the top of her head, he whispered, "And now that I have you, I'll never let you go."

End~ ~ ~

So there, fluffy ending is fluffy. I feel like that was kinda stupid, but I dunno. Tell me what you think if you feel like it, no pressure though :)


End file.
